Sattel Hochstuckli: a mountain of fun

Ann — Tue, 20 Aug 2013 08:10:38 +0000

The best views were towards the right. The GPS wanted us to go left. I turned to my husband, “it better be worth it.”

Now, I know, that wasn’t really fair. We were in Zürich and decided to skip the city and head to the mountains. Only, we had no idea where to go. I pulled out the GPS and searched for the closest destination under the “Winter Sports” heading and hoped for the best. I wanted a ski lift that operated in the summer. He wanted to be able to get out of the car and get a good view. Forty-five minutes, and many left turns later, we arrived in Sattel.

There it was, a lift to the top of the mountain. This lift was called Stuckli Rondo, and is the world’s first rotating gondola. I was already happy that we found some form of transportation to the top that I didn’t care how much it cost or what we would do once up there, we were going to go.

Fortunately the price was reasonable. Fortunately there was a ton of things to do for our whole family once we got there. Unfortunately we couldn’t spend all day there, when we easily would have, because we had plans for the afternoon.

The rotating gondola. There are four different colors, the red one represents fall. I think I should go back in the fall to see the changing colors. (Settel, Switzerland)

Sattel Hochstuckli – For the family

This is what we saw once we got up to the top:

To the left, toboggan run and suspension bridge. (Settel, Switzerland)

To the right, bouncy castles, trampolines, and cafes.

The Toboggan Run – For those who like speed

Since I’m originally from Orlando, I’m often surprised at how few safety measures were in place on some rides. The only “rule” was that kids under a certain age had to share the toboggan with their parent. My husband and toddler went. You can control the speed, so my husband was able to slow down when our son got nervous. Once they finished my son wanted to go again. We distracted him with all the other choices.

For those who like speed, the toboggan run is a good choice.

A small portion of the run. (Yes, that little red blur is my family.)

The “Raiffeisen Skywalk” Suspension Bridge – For those who like heights

This is the longest foot suspension bridge in Europe. The accompanying sign says it’s the length of 5 airplanes. I tried to walk across it. I couldn’t. I got dizzy. I imagined every “what if” scenario. I froze before we reached the halfway point, the carefully turned around to safety.

My husband and daughter continued on. They were fine.

This looks like fun, but I’ll never know.

Bouncy houses and trampolines – For those that need to burn off energy

While the rest of the family crossed the suspension bridge, I got my son ready for the nap he was going to take on the drive back to Zürich. It was time to jump.

There were between 8-10 bouncy houses and a few trampolines. Not all were toddler friendly, but I was lucky because he was only interested in the ones that were. He jumped, ran, and slid. I took in the views. That is, until the cloud came in and I started thinking about my husband and daughter in the middle of the suspension bridge.

Trampolines and bouncy houses… and why yes, that is a cloud that has rolled in while my husband and daughter were on the suspension bridge.

Tips and Practical Information – For those that want to go

Sattel Hochstuckli is open year-round, with different activities depending on the season.
Aside from the activities we did, there are also various trails. They seemed suitable for all ages.
Even in the summer, bring a light jacket. It can get cold up there!
The gondola ride was 19 CHF round trip per adult, free for kids under 6.
The toboggan ride was 4 CHF for each run.
The bouncy castles and trampoline were 7 CHF for an all-day pass for kids under 7.
The skywalk and trails were free.
There are combo packages available, and pricing for different scenarios (teens, groups, etc.) For that and the most up-to-date information, check out their website.
We were able to bring our small umbrella stroller across the bridge. We didn’t see a sign telling us different. However, once we crossed, my husband noticed a sign that said he couldn’t bring the stroller back. They had to take one of the trails back. Since we thought it was a one-way bridge, we weren’t too worried, however it is not a one-way bridge. Ours wasn’t the only stroller. If a stroller came from the other direction it would have been impossible to cross the bridge. If you bring a stroller and want to cross the bridge, make sure it’s a small enough stroller to allow people to pass you in the other direction.

For a completely different way to spend a summer day, check out my guest post at Walking on Travels. There, I talk about visiting Düsseldorf, Germany’s Altstadt and Rhein Promenade.

This post is part of Travel Tip Tuesday hosted by Suitcases and Sippy Cups and Walking on Travels and Travel Tuesday Linkup with A Compass Rose & Found Love. Now What?. Click on the links for more great travel posts.